Quarry LP Increases Stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS)

Quarry LP grew its stake in Masco Co. (NYSE:MAS) by 1,849.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,618 shares of the construction company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,535 shares during the period. Quarry LP’s holdings in Masco were worth $136,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in MAS. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Masco by 6.7% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,031 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $170,000 after buying an additional 128 shares in the last quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Masco by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 44,940 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $3,756,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Masco by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 7,031 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $590,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC raised its holdings in Masco by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 7,917 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $665,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Masco by 3.6% during the second quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,127 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $275,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Kenneth G. Cole sold 37,814 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.32, for a total value of $2,961,592.48. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 36,980 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,896,273.60. The trade was a 50.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Masco Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of MAS opened at $81.01 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 20.74. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $81.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.11. Masco Co. has a 12-month low of $62.95 and a 12-month high of $86.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 1.23.

Masco (NYSE:MAS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The construction company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08. Masco had a net margin of 10.54% and a return on equity of 615.54%. The business had revenue of $1.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.00 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Masco Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

Masco Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Masco’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays upped their target price on Masco from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Masco from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Masco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Masco from $80.00 to $83.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Masco from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Masco presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $85.96.

Masco Company Profile

Masco Corporation designs, manufactures, and distributes home improvement and building products in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company's Plumbing Products segment offers faucets, showerheads, handheld showers, valves, bath hardware and accessories, bathing units, shower bases and enclosures, sinks, toilets, acrylic tubs, shower trays, spas, exercise pools, and fitness systems; brass, copper, and composite plumbing system components; connected water products; thermoplastic solutions, extruded plastic profiles, specialized fabrications, and PEX tubing products; and other non-decorative plumbing products.